Tata to offer location-based service in India

BANGALORE, INDIA: Tata Teleservices today announced that it will utilize Qualcomm’s Assisted GPS (A-GPS) technology to deploy a new location-based service in the Indian market.

The service uses Qualcomm’s Qpoint solution and gpsOne chipset technology, with hosting services from leading wireless communications provider TeleCommunication Systems.

The service is expected to be deployed in late 2008. The company will be the first to use Qualcomm’s technology in India.

Tata’s A-GPS service leverages triangulation with cellular base stations and satellite-based GPS for precise position location in both rural and urban environments, including inside buildings and structures.

“Tata’s dedication to providing its customers with advanced, rich wireless services was initially evident in our implementation of CDMA technology and now can be seen with our deployment of LBS applications based on A-GPS, which provides advanced and reliable wireless navigation technologies for enriched services,” said Pankaj Sethi, president of value added services and enterprise marketing, Tata Teleservices.

The company is planning to work with the local developer community to create both consumer and enterprise LBS applications.

Consumer navigation will include friend finder and social networking applications, while enterprise customers will benefit from asset and fleet tracking applications.